Deolali transit camp
Friday 20th April 1945
Arrived Deolali at about eight and seem to be more or less the first arrivals. This joint looks quite good. Grub is not bad. Go to the bazaar with Tony and he shows me around.
Deolali transit camp was a transit camp for British troops in Deolali, India, notorious for its unpleasant environment, boredom and the psychological problems of soldiers that passed through it. Its name is the origin of the phrase “gone doolally” or “doolally tap”, a phrase meaning to ‘lose one’s mind’.